Certain embodiments of the present invention generally relate to a floating coaxial connector, and an electrical system having a floating coaxial connector for electrically connecting circuit boards and other structures.
In some applications, connectors for electrical components such as circuit boards are blindly mated with each other, as the operator cannot see the connection to be made. Misalignment between two connectors or connector halves when attempting to be blindly mated may prevent a connection entirely, particularly where the connectors cannot accommodate the misalignment. If one of the connectors is mounted to a cable, the terminated cable end can move freely to accommodate misalignment between the connectors. The use of cable mounting, however, is costly, space-consuming, and inconvenient.
To address the problems of cable-mounted connectors, mating connectors soldered to circuit boards have been employed. The mounted connectors must provide some form of floating system to accommodate misalignment. U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,652 discloses one such system utilizing a spring between a front and a rear contact. The spring permits the front and rear contact to float relative to each other and provides a path for signal transmission between the front and rear contact.
Use of the spring, however, has several drawbacks. The spring increases the resistance in the path between the contacts and adversely affects the signal transmission performance. The spring also takes up space which is at a premium in many applications. Use of a spring between the contacts further necessarily requires added time and expense for mounting the spring to the contacts. Moreover, devices using springs between the contacts may not provide adequate range of movement to accept misalignment in some applications.
It is an object of at least certain embodiments of the present invention to overcome the above-noted and other disadvantages of floating connectors.
At least one embodiment of the present invention is provided including a coaxial connector including a first shell or body having a cavity, a second shell or body that resides in the cavity and is movable relative to the first shell, a first contact that resides within the first shell, and a second contact which resides within the second shell. The first and second contacts are movable relative to each other while still maintaining direct contact. Optionally, the first and second contacts include substantially planar first and second contact surfaces, respectively, that slide parallel to each other while maintaining direct contact. Alternatively, the first and second shells may define parallel first and second axes, respectively, that do not remain parallel while the first and second contact surfaces move relative to one another. Optionally, the second contact may include an upper contact arm and a lower contact arm joined by an intermediate portion. The intermediate portion biases the upper contact arm into direct engagement with the first contact. Additionally, the connector may include a flared end configured to receive a mating coaxial connector.
The coaxial connector may additionally comprise a spring that resides between the first and second shells. The spring urges the first and second shells into contact with one another. Optionally, the spring may be a tapered spring having first and second diameters, contacting the first shell at the first diameter and the second shell at the second diameter.
The second contact is movable with respect to the first shell to align with a mating contact of a mating coaxial connector. The second contact remains physically abutted against the first contact throughout the movement to align with the mating contact.
The second contact may be configured to accept a center coaxial contact of a mating connector. One of the first and second shells may be configured to engage an outer coaxial contact of a mating connector.
At least one embodiment of the present invention provides an electrical system including a first circuit board, a second circuit board, a first connector, and a second connector. The first connector mounts to the first circuit board and includes an outer body, an inner body, a first contact, and a second contact. The outer body includes a mounting area for mounting to the first circuit board. The outer body includes a cavity, within which the inner body resides. The inner body is in contact with and movable relative to the outer body. The first contact resides in the outer body and has a contacting surface for electrically communicating with the first circuit board. The second contact resides in the inner body and is in direct contact with the first contact. Further, the first and second contacts are movable relative to each other while maintaining direct contact with one another. The second connector mounts to the second circuit board and is matable to the first connector. The second connector includes a body and a contact that resides in the body. The contact has a contacting surface for electrically communicating with the second circuit board. Also, the contact engages the second contact of the inner body when the first and second connectors are mated to provide communication between the first and second circuit boards.
The second contact of the inner body is movable with respect to the outer body to align with the contact of the second connector. The second contact of the inner body remains physically abutted to the first contact of the outer body throughout movement to align with the mating contact.
The second contact of the inner body and the contact of the second connector are configured to engage each other and provide a first path of electrical communication between the first and second circuit boards. Additionally, the inner body of the first connector and the body of the second connector are configured to engage each other and provide a second path of electrical communication between the first and second circuit boards.
Certain embodiments of the present invention thus accommodate misalignment for blindly mating electrical connectors. Little space is required, and cost of production is low. Further, there is low resistance through the contacts, and a large range of motion to accommodate misalignment is also provided.